Label printing apparatus and wordprocessor

Abstract

A label printing apparatus includes a liquid crystal display unit for displaying an input character string and a message corresponding to each operation stage, a printing unit for printing a character string on each label, a storage unit for storing each data, and a CPU for performing each processing and control. Label information specifying sizes and the like of various types of labels, sheet numbers corresponding to the label information, character size information defining character sizes, and the like are stored in the storage unit. The CPU specifies label information corresponding to the sheet number and selects a maximum printable character size from a character size table as an initial value on the basis of a printing area. The character size is changed so that the horizontal length of an input character string falls within the printing area. The character size is further changed so that all the characters of the character string extending in all the lines fall within the printing area. An optimal character size is finally selected, and actual printing is performed on each label using this character size.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A label printing apparatus for inputting a desired character string with keys and printing the input character string in units of labels arranged on a label sheet, comprising

storage means and processing means,

said storage means storing

label information for specifying a size and a layout position of each of the labels arranged on the label sheet,

identification codes corresponding to various pieces of said label information, and

character size information defining a plurality of character sizes as character sizes subjected to printing, and

said processing means comprising

first processing means for specifying said label information corresponding to an input identification code,

second processing means for discriminating a printing area of the label from the specified label information, comparing a vertical length of the printing area with a horizontal length of the printing area to determine a smaller one of the vertical and horizontal lengths as a reference length, and selecting a maximum character size falling within a square area having one end as the reference length from the character size information,

third processing means for calculating a horizontal length of a generated character string when the horizontal length of the selected character size is defined as a reference and every time an input character count is increased/decreased, and

fourth processing means for always comparing the horizontal length of the generated character string with the horizontal length of the printing area of the label, selecting a character size smaller than a character size of the generated character string from the character size information when the horizontal length of the generated character string is larger than that of the printing area, and changing said selected character size into this small character size.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said third processing means calculates the horizontal length of the generated character string in units of lines when the number of characters input to each line is increased/decreased, and

said fourth processing means selects a character size smaller than a character size of the character string and changes the character sizes of all lines to this small character size when said fourth processing means always compares the horizontal length of the generated character string with the horizontal length of the printing area of the label in units of lines, and a line in which the horizontal length of the character string is larger than that of the printing area is present, and

said apparatus further comprises

fifth processing means for adding the vertical lengths of the character sizes determined by the fourth processing means to obtain an overall length of all the lines, comparing the overall length with the vertical length of the printing area of the label, selecting a character size smaller than the character string when the overall length is larger than the vertical length of the printing area, and changing the character sizes of all the lines to this selected small character size.

3. A label printing apparatus for inputting a desired character string with keys and printing the input character string in units of labels arranged on a label sheet, comprising

display means for displaying a message corresponding to an input character string and each operation stage;

printing means for performing printing on each label;

storage means; and

processing means,

said storage means storing label information for specifying a size and a layout position of each of the labels arranged on the label sheet, identification codes corresponding to various pieces of label information, and character size information defining a plurality of character sizes as character sizes subjected to printing, and

said processing means including

first processing means for specifying label information corresponding to an input identification code,

second processing means for discriminating a printing area of the label from the specified label information, comparing a vertical length of the printing area with a horizontal length of the printing area to determine a smaller one of the vertical and horizontal lengths as a reference length, and selecting a maximum character size falling within a square area having one end as the reference length from the character size information,

third processing means for calculating a horizontal length of a generated character string when the horizontal length of the selected character size is defined as a reference and every time an input character count is increased/decreased, and

fourth processing means for always comparing the horizontal length of the generated character string with the horizontal length of the printing area of the label, selecting a character size smaller than a character size of the character string from the character size information when the horizontal length of the character string is larger than that of the printing area, and changing all character sizes to this small character size.

4. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

said third processing means calculates the horizontal length of the generated character string in units of lines when the number of characters input to each line is increased/decreased, and

said fourth processing means selects a character size smaller than a character size of the character string and changes the character sizes of all lines to this small character size when said fourth processing means always compares the horizontal length of the generated character string with the horizontal length of the printing area of the label in units of lines, and a line in which the horizontal length of the character string is larger than that of the printing area is present, and

said apparatus further comprises

fifth processing means for adding the vertical lengths of the character sizes determined by the fourth processing means to obtain an overall length of all the lines, comparing the overall length with the vertical length of the printing area of the label, selecting a character size smaller than the character string when the overall length is larger than the vertical length of the printing area, and changing the character sizes of all the lines to this selected small character size.

5. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said processing means comprise character spacing assigning means for equally assigning spacings of the input characters,

said character spacing assigning means comprising

sixth processing means for determining the printing area of the label from the label information of the label sheet subjected to printing and calculating the horizontal length of the printing area,

seventh processing means for calculating an overall horizontal length of all characters on each line every time the number of input characters is increased/decreased or the size of the input character is changed,

eighth processing means for subtracting the overall horizontal length of the characters which is calculated in said seventh processing means from the horizontal length of the printing area which is calculated in said sixth processing means in units of lines upon reception of a key input representing an end of character editing, and calculating a length of a blank area formed in the printing area in units of lines, and

ninth processing means for equally assigning each blank area obtained by said eighth processing means to the characters input for each line on the basis of the blank area of each line which is obtained in said eight processing means and the number of characters input for each line.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said ninth processing means for, when a remainder is formed in equal assignment of the blank area to character spacings, dividing the remainder into halves, and equally assigning the halves to the blank areas formed at frontmost and rearmost portions of the character string.

7. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said processing means comprise line spacing assigning means for equally assigning spacings of the input character string,

said line spacing assigning means comprising

tenth processing means for determining the printing area of the label from the label information of the label sheet subjected to printing and calculating the vertical length of the printing area,

eleventh processing means for extracting a character size having a maximum vertical length in units of lines, and calculating an overall vertical length of all extracted character sizes every time the number of input characters is increased/decreased or the size of the input character is changed,

twelfth processing means for subtracting the overall vertical length calculated in said eleventh processing means from the vertical length of the printing area which is calculated in said tenth processing means upon reception of a key input representing an end of character editing, and calculating a vertical length of a blank area formed in the printing area, and

thirteenth processing means for equally assigning the blank area obtained by the twelfth processing means to the lines input in the printing area on the basis of the blank area obtained in said twelfth processing means and the number of input lines.

8. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said thirteenth processing means for, when a remainder is formed in equal assignment of the blank area to line spacings, dividing the remainder into halves, and equally assigning the halves to the blank areas formed above an uppermost line and below a lowermost line.

9. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said processing means further comprises character string overflow determining means for determining whether a character string during editing falls within one line,

said character string overflow determining means comprising

fourteenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in said one line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

fifteenth processing means for adding an overall horizontal length of the automatically set character size changed into the minimum character size and an overall horizontal length of character sizes arbitrarily set, and obtaining a character string length of a character string within said one line during editing, and

sixteenth processing means for always comparing the character string length with the horizontal length of the printing area, and when the character string length is larger than the horizontal length of the printing area, displaying a character overflow mark between a character string falling within the printing area and a character string overflowing from the printing area in the character string which is being edited and displayed on said display means.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said processing means further comprises line overflow determining means for determining whether a character string which is being edited and is input extending in a plurality of lines falls within the printing area of the label,

said line overflow determining means comprising

seventeenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in each line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

eighteenth processing means for extracting a character size having a maximum vertical length from a character string of lines including arbitrarily set character sizes and a currently edited line, and for obtaining an overall vertical length of all the lines by adding the vertical lengths of the extracted character sizes, and

nineteenth processing means for always comparing the overall vertical length of all the lines with the vertical length of the printing area, and when the overall vertical length is larger than the vertical length of the printing area, for displaying a message representing line overflow on said display means.

11. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said processing means comprise line spacing assigning means for equally assigning spacings of the input character string,

said line spacing assigning means comprising

tenth processing means for determining the printing area of the label from the label information of the label sheet subjected to printing and calculating the vertical length of the printing area,

eleventh processing means for extracting a character size having a maximum vertical length in units of lines, and calculating an overall vertical length of all extracted character sizes every time the number of input characters is increased/decreased or the size of the input character is changed,

twelfth processing means for subtracting the overall vertical length calculated in said eleventh processing means from the vertical length of the printing area which is calculated in said tenth processing means upon reception of a key input representing an end of character editing, and calculating a vertical length of a blank area formed in the printing area, and

thirteenth processing means for equally assigning the blank area obtained by the twelfth processing means to the lines input in the printing area on the basis of the blank area obtained in said twelfth processing means and the number of input lines.

12. An apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said thirteenth processing means for, when a remainder is formed in equal assignment of the blank area to line spacings, dividing the remainder into halves, and equally assigning the halves to the blank areas formed above an uppermost line and below a lowermost line.

13. An apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said processing means further comprises

character string overflow determining means for determining whether a character string during editing falls within one line,

said character string overflow determining means comprising

fourteenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in said one line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

fifteenth processing means for adding an overall horizontal length of the automatically set character size changed into the minimum character size and an overall horizontal length of character sizes arbitrarily set, and obtaining a character string length of a character string within said one line during editing, and

sixteenth processing means for always comparing the character string length with the horizontal length of the printing area, and when the character string length is larger than the horizontal length of the printing area, displaying a character overflow mark between a character string falling within the printing area and a character string overflowing from the printing area in the character string which is being edited and displayed on said display means.

14. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said processing means further comprises line overflow determining means for determining whether a character string which is being edited and is input extending in a plurality of lines falls within the printing area of the label,

said line overflow determining means comprising

seventeenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in each line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

eighteenth processing means for extracting a character size having a maximum vertical length from a character string of lines including arbitrarily set character sizes and a currently edited line, and for obtaining an overall vertical length of all the lines by adding the vertical lengths of the extracted character sizes, and

nineteenth processing means for always comparing the overall vertical length of all the lines with the vertical length of the printing area, and when the overall vertical length is larger than the vertical length of the printing area, displaying a message representing line overflow on said display means.

15. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said processing means further comprises character string overflow determining means for determining whether a character string during editing falls within one line,

said character string overflow determining means comprising

fourteenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in said one line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

fifteenth processing means for adding an overall horizontal length of the automatically set character size changed into the minimum character size and an overall horizontal length of character sizes arbitrarily set, and for obtaining a character string length of a character string within said one line during editing, and

sixteenth processing means for always comparing the character string length with the horizontal length of the printing area, and when the character string length is larger than the horizontal length of the printing area, for displaying a character overflow mark between a character string falling within the printing area and a character string overflowing from the printing area in the character string which is being edited and displayed on said display means.

16. An apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said processing means further comprises line overflow determining means for determining whether a character string which is being edited and is input extending in a plurality of lines falls within the printing area of the label,

said line overflow determining means comprising

seventeenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in each line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

eighteenth processing means for extracting a character size having a maximum vertical length from a character string of lines including arbitrarily set character sizes and a currently edited line, and for obtaining an overall vertical length of all the lines by adding the vertical lengths .of the extracted character sizes, and

nineteenth processing means for always comparing the overall vertical length of all the lines with the vertical length of the printing area, and when the overall vertical length is larger than the vertical length of the printing area, for displaying a message representing line overflow on said display means.

17. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said processing means further comprises character size display means for displaying a set character size in an actual size,

said character size display means comprising

twentieth processing means for reading out the vertical and horizontal lengths of a character size from the character size information of said storage means when a change in the character size is designated, and

twenty-first processing means for causing said display means to display a quadrangle corresponding to the readout vertical and horizontal lengths.

18. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the label information stored in said storage means comprises:

a list table in which the vertical and horizontal lengths of the various labels are registered, and

a reduction table for storing a plurality of predefined reference size data for determining reduction magnifications of the various labels and reduction magnification data for reducing the reference size data into sizes smaller than a longitudinal length of said display means, the plurality of predefined reference size data being set to correspond to the reduction magnification data, respectively, and

said processing means further comprise image display means including

twenty-second processing means for, when image display of a predetermined label is designated, reading out the vertical and horizontal length data of the predetermined label from said list table, and for selecting reduction magnification data corresponding to a longest size of the reference size data which is smaller than a longer one of the readout vertical and horizontal lengths, and

twenty-third processing means for reducing the vertical and horizontal lengths of the predetermined label and a character size of a character printed on the predetermined label on the basis of the reduction magnification selected by said twenty-second processing means, for displaying the reduced predetermined label in a form of a quadrangular frame on said display means, and for displaying each character to be printed on said predetermined label as a dot pattern having a reduced character size at a position corresponding to an interior of the frame.

19. An apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said image display means further comprises twenty-fourth processing means for reversing vertical and horizontal lengths of the quadrangular frame, for reversing vertical dot data and horizontal dot data of the dot pattern, and for displaying the reversed dot pattern on said display means when an image is displayed on said display means by said image display means and designation for rotating the image through 90.degree. is input.

20. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said label printing apparatus is an apparatus for performing printing on a label having two columns, and said processing means comprise

twenty-fifth processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen having a plurality of choices including a choice for selecting whether each character string to be printed in each of the two columns of said label is an erecting or inverted character string and a choice for selecting whether character strings to be printed in the two columns are the same or different,

twenty-sixth processing means for displaying an input screen for prompting an input of one type of character string when a predetermined choice is made in accordance with designation on the selection screen and the character strings to be printed in the two columns are the same or an input screen for prompting an input of two types of character strings when the predetermined choice is made in accordance with the designation on the selection screen and the character strings to be printed in the two columns are different, and

twenty-seventh processing means for, when a predetermined character string is input in accordance with designation on the input screen, executing printing processing on the label in accordance with selection contents of the predetermined character string.

21. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said label printing apparatus is an apparatus for printing input character strings in a label having three columns, respectively, and

said processing means comprise

twenty-eighth processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen for selecting a desired column from all the columns,

twenty-ninth processing means for causing said display means to display an input screen for prompting an input of a character string to be printed in a predetermined column when the predetermined column is selected on the selection screen, and

thirtieth processing means for executing printing processing of a plurality of character strings on the label when the plurality of character strings are input in accordance with designation on the input screen.

22. An apparatus according to claim 21, wherein said label printing apparatus is an apparatus for printing input character strings in a label having three columns, respectively, and

said processing means comprise

twenty-eighth processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen for selecting a desired column from all the columns,

twenty-ninth processing means for causing said display means to display an input screen for prompting an input of a character string to be printed in a predetermined column when the predetermined column is selected on the selection screen, and

thirtieth processing means for executing printing processing of a plurality of character strings on the label when the plurality of character strings are input in accordance with designation on the input screen.

23. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said label printing apparatus further comprises feed means for feeding an inserted label sheet to a printing position in printing processing and position detecting means for detecting whether the label sheet fed by said feed means is set at a position serving as a reference for the printing processing, and

said processing means comprise feed control means for controlling feeding of the label sheet subjected to printing,

said feed control means comprising

thirty-first processing means for causing said display means to display a message for prompting a key input for a start of printing to a user after the user completes a printing setup operation,

thirty-second processing means for causing said feed means to start feeding the label sheet upon reception of the key input for the start of printing, and

thirty-third processing means for reversing a feed direction of the label sheet fed by said feed means when the label sheet is not detected by said position detecting means upon feeding of the label sheet by a predetermined distance by said feed means.

24. An apparatus according to claim 23, wherein said feed control means further comprises thirty-fourth processing means for causing said display means to display a message for prompting re-feed of the label sheet when the feed direction of the label sheet fed by said feed means is reversed.

25. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein

the label information stored in said storage means includes position information representing layout positions of labels on the various label sheets, size information representing sizes of the labels, and position codes corresponding to the layout positions of the labels, and

said processing means further comprises

thirty-fifth processing means for specifying the position information of an unnecessary printing label of a plurality of labels arranged on the label sheet on the basis of an input position code when the position code is input to designate a layout position of the unnecessary printing label of the labels arranged on the label sheet, and

thirty-sixth processing means for sequentially executing printing processing of the input character strings on respective labels except for the unnecessary printing label on the basis of the position information specified by said thirty-fifth processing means and the position information and the size information of the label sheet which are stored in said storage means.

26. An apparatus according to claim 25, wherein

said storage means comprises a position storage unit for storing a predetermined one of the position codes, and

said processing means comprise

thirty-seventh processing means for causing said position storage unit to store the position code representing a printing start position of the label sheet subjected to printing,

thirty-eighth processing means for defining as the printing start position a layout position designated by the position code stored in said position storage unit, and for sequentially performing printing processing on the labels on the basis of the position information and the size information of the labels arranged on the label sheet,

thirty-ninth processing means for specifying the position code representing a printing start position in next printing processing on the basis of the layout position of a last printed label in the printing processing, and

fortieth processing means for updating the position code stored in said position storage unit and storing the position code specified by said thirty-ninth processing means as a new printing start position in said position storage unit.

27. An apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means automatically stores a predetermined specific position code in said position storage unit when an unused label sheet is subjected to printing processing.

28. An apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means stores a position code arbitrarily input by a user in said position storage unit.

29. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein

the label information stored in said storage means includes position information representing layout positions of labels on the various label sheets, size information representing sizes of the labels, and position codes corresponding to the layout positions of the labels,

said storage means comprises a position storage unit for storing a predetermined one of the position codes, and

said processing means comprise

thirty-seventh processing means for causing said position storage unit to store the position code representing a printing start position of the label sheet subjected to printing,

thirty-eighth processing means for defining as the printing start position a layout position designated by the position code stored in said position storage unit, and for sequentially performing printing processing on the labels on the basis of the position information and the size information of the labels arranged on the label sheet,

thirty-ninth processing means for specifying the position code representing a printing start position in next printing processing on the basis of the layout position of a last printed label in the printing processing, and

fortieth processing means for updating the position code stored in said position storage unit and storing the position code specified by said thirty-ninth processing means as a new printing start position in said position storage unit.

30. An apparatus according to claim 29, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means automatically stores a predetermined specific position code in said position storage unit when an unused label sheet is subjected to printing processing.

31. An apparatus according to claim 29, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means stores a position code arbitrarily input by a user in said position storage unit.

32. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein

said processing means further comprises registration processing means for registering, in said storage means, a combination of the character string information edited by said fifth processing means and the additional information including label attribute information and added in accordance with types of label sheets during character editing of the character string information,

said registration processing means comprising

individual registration processing means for combining an input one piece of the additional information and an input one piece of the character string information and registering a combination as individual registration information in said storage means,

batch registration processing means for combining a plurality of pieces of said character string information and an input one piece of said additional information and registering a combination as batch registration information in said storage means,

selection processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen for causing to alternatively select registration of the character string information by one of said individual registration processing means and said batch registration processing means.

33. An apparatus according to claim 32, wherein

the additional information includes registration character data input to identify the character string information stored in correspondence with the additional information, and

said processing means comprise readout processing means for reading out the registration information registered in said storage means,

said readout processing means comprising

forty-first processing means for causing said display means to display a screen for prompting an input of the registration character data to be read out,

forty-second processing means for sequentially reading out the additional information from said storage means and selecting the additional information having the same label attribute data as that of a currently edited label sheet, and

forty-third processing means for selecting the additional information, having the same registration character data as that input by said forty-first processing means, from the additional information selected from the forty-second processing means.

34. An apparatus according to claim 33, wherein

the additional information includes the identification code of the label sheet which is set during character editing, and

said readout processing means further comprises

forty-fourth processing means for causing said display means to display a screen for prompting an input of an identification code of a desired label sheet subjected to printing,

forty-fifth processing means for comparing the identification code included in the additional information selected by said forty-third processing means with the identification code input by said forty-fourth processing means and determining whether the identification codes coincide with each other,

forty-sixth processing means for setting the character string information corresponding to the additional information selected by said forty-third processing means as character string information to be printed, when said forty-fifth processing means determines that the identification codes coincide with each other, and

forty-seventh processing means for causing said second to fourth processing means to change the character string information so as to be suitable for the desired label sheet subjected to printing when said forty-fifth processing means determines that the identification codes do not coincide with each other.

35. An apparatus according to claim 34, wherein said readout processing means comprises forty-eighth means for calculating a maximum character count and a maximum line count of a character string which can be printed within the printing area determined by said second processing means using the character having the minimum character size in the character size information, and at the same time causing said display means to display a message representing that a character string selected by said forty-third processing means cannot be loaded when the number of characters of the character string selected by said forty-third processing means is larger than the calculated maximum character count or the number of lines of the character string selected by said forty-third processing means is larger than the maximum line count.

36. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said processing means further comprises character string overflow determining means for determining whether a character string during editing falls within one line,

said character string overflow determining means comprising

fourteenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in said one line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

fifteenth processing means for adding an overall horizontal length of the automatically set character size changed into the minimum character size and an overall horizontal length of character sizes arbitrarily set, and obtaining a character string length of a character string within said one line during editing, and

sixteenth processing means for always comparing the character string length with the horizontal length of the printing area, and when the character string length is larger than the horizontal length of the printing area, displaying a character overflow mark between a character string falling within the printing area and a character string overflowing from the printing area in the character string which is being edited and displayed on said display means.

37. An apparatus according to claim 36, wherein said processing means further comprises line overflow determining means for determining whether a character string which is being edited and is input extending in a plurality of lines falls within the printing area of the label,

said line overflow determining means comprising

seventeenth processing means for changing an automatically set character size present in each line during editing into a minimum character size in the character size information,

eighteenth processing means for extracting a character size having a maximum vertical length from a character string of lines including arbitrarily set character sizes and a currently edited line, and for obtaining an overall vertical length of all the lines by adding the vertical lengths of the extracted character sizes, and

nineteenth processing means for always comparing the overall vertical length of all the lines with the vertical length of the printing area, and when the overall vertical length is larger than the vertical length of the printing area, for displaying a message representing line overflow on said display means.

38. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said processing means further comprises character size display means for displaying a set character size in an actual size,

said character size display means comprising

twentieth processing means for reading out the vertical and horizontal lengths of a character size from the character size information of said storage means when a change in the character size is designated, and

twenty-first processing means for causing said display means to display a quadrangle corresponding to the readout vertical and horizontal lengths.

39. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the label information stored in said storage means comprises:

a list table in which the vertical and horizontal lengths of the various labels are registered, and

a reduction table for storing a plurality of predefined reference size data for determining reduction magnifications of the various labels and reduction magnification data for reducing the reference size data into sizes smaller than a longitudinal length of said display means, the plurality of predefined reference size data being set to correspond to the reduction magnification data, respectively, and

said processing means further comprises image display means including

twenty-second processing means for, when image display of a predetermined label is designated, reading out the vertical and horizontal length data of the predetermined label from said list table, and selecting reduction magnification data corresponding to a longest size of the reference size data which is smaller than a longer one of the readout vertical and horizontal lengths, and

twenty-third processing means for reducing the vertical and horizontal lengths of the predetermined label and a character size of a character printed on the predetermined label on the basis of the reduction magnification selected by said twenty-second processing means, for displaying the reduced predetermined label in a form of a quadrangular frame on said display means, and for displaying each character to be printed on said predetermined label as a dot pattern having a reduced character size at a position corresponding to an interior of the frame.

40. An apparatus according to claim 39, wherein said image display means further comprises twenty-fourth processing means for reversing vertical and horizontal lengths of the quadrangular frame, for reversing vertical dot data and horizontal dot data of the dot pattern, and for displaying the reversed dot pattern on said display means when an image is displayed on said display means by said image display means and designation for rotating the image through 90.degree. is input.

41. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said label printing apparatus is an apparatus for performing printing on a label having two columns, and said processing means comprise

twenty-fifth processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen having a plurality of choices including a choice for selecting whether each character string to be printed in each of the two columns of said label is an erecting or inverted character string and a choice for selecting whether character strings to be printed in the two columns are the same or different,

twenty-sixth processing means for displaying an input screen for prompting an input of one type of character string when a predetermined choice is made in accordance with designation on the selection screen and the character strings to be printed in the two columns are the same or an input screen for prompting an input of two types of character strings when the predetermined choice is made in accordance with the designation on the selection screen and the character strings to be printed in the two columns are different, and

twenty-seventh processing means for, when a predetermined character string is input in accordance with designation on the input screen, executing printing processing on the label in accordance with selection contents of the predetermined character string.

42. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said label printing apparatus is an apparatus for printing input character strings in a label having three columns, respectively, and

said processing means comprise

twenty-eighth processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen for selecting a desired column from all the columns,

twenty-ninth processing means for causing said display means to display an input screen for prompting an input of a character string to be printed in a predetermined column when the predetermined column is selected on the selection screen, and

thirtieth processing means for executing printing processing of a plurality of character strings on the label when the plurality of character strings are input in accordance with designation on the input screen.

43. An apparatus according to claim 42, wherein said label printing apparatus is an apparatus for printing input character strings in a label having three columns, respectively, and

said processing means comprise

twenty-eighth processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen for selecting a desired column from all the columns,

twenty-ninth processing means for causing said display means to display an input screen for prompting an input of a character string to be printed in a predetermined column when the predetermined column is selected on the selection screen, and

thirtieth processing means for executing printing processing of a plurality of character strings on the label when the plurality of character strings are input in accordance with designation on the input screen.

44. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said label printing apparatus further comprises feed means for feeding an inserted label sheet to a printing position in printing processing and position detecting means for detecting whether the label sheet fed by said feed means is set at a position serving as a reference for the printing processing, and

said processing means comprise feed control means for controlling feeding of the label sheet subjected to printing,

said feed control means comprising

thirty-first processing means for causing said display means to display a message for prompting a key input for a start of printing to a user after the user completes a printing setup operation,

thirty-second processing means for causing said feed means to start feeding the label sheet upon reception of the key input for the start of printing, and

thirty-third processing means for reversing a feed direction of the label sheet fed by said feed means when the label sheet is not detected by said position detecting means upon feeding of the label sheet by a predetermined distance by said feed means.

45. An apparatus according to claim 44, wherein said feed control means further comprises thirty-fourth processing means for causing said display means to display a message for prompting re-feed of the label sheet when the feed direction of the label sheet fed by said feed means is reversed.

46. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the label information stored in said storage means includes position information representing layout positions of labels on the various label sheets, size information representing sizes of the labels, and position codes corresponding to the layout positions of the labels, and

said processing means further comprises

thirty-fifth processing means for specifying the position information of an unnecessary printing label of a plurality of labels arranged on the label sheet on the basis of an input position code when the position code is input to designate a layout position of the unnecessary printing label of the labels arranged on the label sheet, and

thirty-sixth processing means for sequentially executing printing processing of the input character strings on respective labels except for the unnecessary printing label on the basis of the position information specified by said thirty-fifth processing means and the position information and the size information of the label sheet which are stored in said storage means.

47. An apparatus according to claim 46, wherein

said storage means defined in claim 35 comprises a position storage unit for storing a predetermined one of the position codes, and

said processing means comprise

thirty-seventh processing means for causing said position storage unit to store the position code representing a printing start position of the label sheet subjected to printing,

thirty-eighth processing means for defining as the printing start position a layout position designated by the position code stored in said position storage unit, and for sequentially performing printing processing on the labels on the basis of the position information and the size information of the labels arranged on the label sheet,

thirty-ninth processing means for specifying the position code representing a printing start position in next printing processing on the basis of the layout position of a last printed label in the printing processing, and

fortieth processing means for updating the position code stored in said position storage unit and storing the position code specified by said thirty-ninth processing means as a new printing start position in said position storage unit.

48. An apparatus according to claim 47, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means automatically stores a predetermined specific position code in said position storage unit when an unused label sheet is subjected to printing processing.

49. An apparatus according to claim 47, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means stores a position code arbitrarily input by a user in said position storage unit.

50. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the label information stored in said storage means includes position information representing layout positions of labels on the various label sheets, size information representing sizes of the labels, and position codes corresponding to the layout positions of the labels,

said storage means comprises a position storage unit for storing a predetermined one of the position codes, and

said processing means comprises

thirty-seventh processing means for causing said position storage unit to store the position code representing a printing start position of the label sheet subjected to printing,

thirty-eighth processing means for defining as the printing start position a layout position designated by the position code stored in said position storage unit, and for sequentially performing printing processing on the labels on the basis of the position information and the size information of the labels arranged on the label sheet,

thirty-ninth processing means for specifying the position code representing a printing start position in next printing processing on the basis of the layout position of a last printed label in the printing processing, and

fortieth processing means for updating the position code stored in said position storage unit and storing the position code specified by said thirty-ninth processing means as a new printing start position in said position storage unit.

51. An apparatus according to claim 50, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means automatically stores a predetermined specific position code in said position storage unit when an unused label sheet is subjected to printing processing.

52. An apparatus according to claim 50, wherein said thirty-seventh processing means stores a position code arbitrarily input by a user in said position storage unit.

53. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

said processing means further comprise registration processing means for registering, in said storage means, a combination of the character string information edited by said fourth processing means and the additional information including label attribute information and added in accordance with types of label sheets during character editing of the character string information,

said registration processing means comprising

individual registration processing means for combining an input one piece of the additional information and an input one piece of the character string information and registering a combination as individual registration information in said storage means,

batch registration processing means for combining a plurality of pieces of said character string information and an input one piece of said additional information and registering a combination as batch registration information in said storage means,

selection processing means for causing said display means to display a selection screen for causing to alternatively select registration of the character string information by one of said individual registration processing means and said batch registration processing means.

54. An apparatus according to claim 53, wherein

the additional information defined in claim 49 includes registration character data input to identify the character string information stored in correspondence with the additional information, and

said processing means comprise readout processing means for reading out the registration information registered in said storage means,

said readout processing means comprising

forty-first processing means for causing said display means to display a screen for prompting an input of the registration character data to be read out,

forty-second processing means for sequentially reading out the additional information from said storage means and selecting the additional information having the same label attribute data as that of a currently edited label sheet, and

forty-third processing means for selecting the additional information, having the same registration character data as that input by said forty-first processing means, from the additional information selected from the forty-second processing means.

55. An apparatus according to claim 54, wherein

the additional information includes the identification code of the label sheet which is set during character editing, and

said readout processing means further comprises

forty-fourth processing means for causing said display means to display a screen for prompting an input of an identification code of a desired label sheet subjected to printing,

forty-fifth processing means for comparing the identification code included in the additional information selected by said forty-third processing means with the identification code input by said forty-fourth processing means and determining whether the identification codes coincide with each other,

forty-sixth processing means for setting the character string information corresponding to the additional information selected by said forty-third processing means as character string information to be printed, when said forty-fifth processing means determines that the identification codes coincide with each other, and

forty-seventh processing means for causing said second to fourth processing means to change the character string information so as to be suitable for the desired label sheet subjected to printing when said forty-fifth processing means determines that the identification codes do not coincide with each other.

56. An apparatus according to claim 55, wherein said readout processing means comprises forty-eighth means for calculating a maximum character count and a maximum line count of a character string which can be printed within the printing area determined by said second processing means using the character having the minimum character size in the character size information, and at the same time causing said display means to display a message representing that a character string selected by said forty-third processing means cannot be loaded when the number of characters of the character string selected by said forty-third processing means is larger than the calculated maximum character count or the number of lines of the character string selected by said forty-third processing means is larger than the maximum line count.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention mainly relates to a label printing apparatus for printing information on a label sheet on which a large number of labels having the standardized layout and shape, and the like are adhered.

2. Related Background Art

Identical index labels are often adhered to a large number of samples in, e.g., an exhibition. Strong demand has arisen for suitable filing using index labels corresponding to the kinds of information in diversification of information. In addition, the same information may be shared by a plurality of persons at a plurality of locations. Conventional labels of this type are handwritten to result in cumbersome operations and poor appearance.

In order to solve the above problems, there is provided a printing apparatus capable of efficiently printing the same contents at the upper and lower positions of a ruled label by properly selecting a printing direction (Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 1-178,948).

There is also provided a label printing apparatus for setting an input character count and an input line count to fall within one label and calculating a label count as an integer on one label sheet (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-175722).

There is further provided a label printer for automatically calculating a character size to a full-height, full-width size or a full-height, half-width size, so that characters can be printed within a predetermined label width (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-189276).

There is further provided a label printer capable of inputting a printing format of a label as a single slip and printing information on labels having different sizes (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-158072).

In the device of Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 1-178948, processing for properly printing information on one index label is described in detail, but no description is made for an operation for detecting the positions and sizes of a plurality of index labels and a control method of printing information on each label.

The prior arts described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 61-175722, 63-189276, and 62-158072 are associated with the way of properly printing information on one label, but not with the way of printing information on a large number of labels arranged on a label sheet.

In a conventional label printing apparatus, information is printed on each individual label with a character size designated beforehand. However, since the kinds of labels are several hundreds, the character size must be selected in accordance with the size of each individual label. In addition, the character size must be changed in accordance with the character count and line count of characters to be printed. An operation for setting these conditions is so cumbersome as to perform printing in accordance with the desired layout of a user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a label printing apparatus capable of printing a character string in a proper state on a large number of labels adhered on a label sheet.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a label printing apparatus capable of eliminating cumbersome character size setup required for properly performing printing on a desired label.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a label printing apparatus for inputting a desired character string with keys and printing the input character string in units of labels arranged on a label sheet, comprising a storage means and a processing means.

The storage means stores label information for specifying a size, a layout position, and the like of each of the labels arranged on the label sheet, identification codes corresponding to various pieces of label information, and character size information defining a plurality of character sizes as character sizes subjected to printing.

The processing means comprises:

a first processing means for specifying label information corresponding to an input identification code;

a second processing means for discriminating a printing area of the label from the specified label information, comparing a vertical length of the printing area with a horizontal length of the printing area to determine a smaller one of the vertical and horizontal lengths as a reference length, and selecting a maximum character size falling within a square area having one end as the reference length from the character size information;

a third processing means for calculating a horizontal length of a generated character string when the horizontal length of the selected character size is defined as a reference and every time an input character count is increased/decreased; and

a fourth processing means for always comparing the horizontal length of the generated character string with the horizontal length of the printing area of the label, selecting a character size smaller than a character size of the character string from the character size information when the horizontal length of the character string is larger than that of the printing area, and changing all character sizes to this small character size.

Of the first to fourth processing means, the third processing means calculates the horizontal length of the generated character string in units of lines when the number of characters input to each line is increased/decreased, and

the fourth processing means can select a character size smaller than a character size of the character string and change the character sizes of all lines to this small character size when the fourth processing means always compares the horizontal length of the generated character string with the horizontal length of the printing area of the label in units of lines, and a line in which the horizontal length of the character string is larger than that of the printing area is present.

When this processing is executed in the third and fourth processing means, a fifth processing means may be provided.

The fifth processing means adds the vertical lengths of the character sizes determined by the fourth processing means to obtain an overall length of all the lines, compares the overall length with the vertical length of the printing area of the label, selects a character size smaller than the character string when the overall length is larger than the vertical length of the printing area, and changes the character sizes of all the lines to this selected small character size.

The label sheet used in the label printing apparatus having the above arrangement basically has standard vertical and horizontal lengths of labels arranged on the label sheet and standard layout positions of labels on the sheet in accordance with the type of label sheet. Identification codes are assigned to the standards, respectively.

Note that the any labels can be used if they can be separated from the label sheet. For example, labels may be detachably adhered on the label sheet, may be cut from the label sheet, or the like.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wordprocessor, comprising:

a keyboard having keys assigned with characters, symbols, and numbers, cursor shift keys, a conversion key, and a confirmation key;

a display means for displaying data input from the keyboard;

a storage means for storing a plurality of symbols or numbers in divided groups;

a forty-ninth processing means for displaying on the display means a symbol or number assigned to a depressed key as non-confirmed data when a key assigned with the symbol or number of the keyboard is depressed;

a fiftieth processing means for reading out all data of the same group as that of the non-confirmed data and displaying all the data as a selected data group upon depression of the conversion key; and

a fifty-first processing means for confirming desired data as input data replacing the desired data with the non-confirmed data, and displaying the non-confirmed data as the desired data on the display means after the cursor shift keys are operated to move a cursor to the desired data in the selected data group displayed on the display means and the confirmation key is depressed.

The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not to be considered as limiting the present invention.

Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art form this detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the outer appearance of a label printing apparatus according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the internal mechanism of the label printing apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the internal mechanism of the label printing apparatus;

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the key layout of the label printing apparatus;

FIG. 5 is a view showing an arrangement of a sheet sensor;

FIG. 6 is a control block diagram of the label printing apparatus;

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the positional relationship of labels on a label sheet;

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing an operation sequence for a start screen;

FIG. 9 is a flow chart for explaining initial value setup of character sizes in automatic character size setup;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart for explaining automatic character size setup;

FIGS. 11A and 11B are views for explaining a method of setting initial values of character sizes in correspondence with label shapes;

FIG. 12 is a flow chart for explaining automatic setup of a character spacing and a line spacing;

FIG. 13 is a schematic plan view for explaining the relationship between lengths (e.g., a character spacing and a line spacing) of the respective portions of a label subjected to printing and the symbols representing these portions;

FIG. 14 is a flow chart showing processing when an input character or line count exceeds the size of the printing area;

FIG. 15 is a flow chart showing processing when an input line count exceeds the size of the printing area upon a line feed;

FIGS. 16A, 16B, and 16C are views for explaining messages displayed when line overflow occurs;

FIG. 17 is a view for explaining a state in which an overflow mark is displayed within a character string;

FIG. 18 is a flow chart showing character size change processing of a character string;

FIG. 19 is a view showing the contents of a character size setup table;

FIGS. 20A to 20F are views showing display contents in character size change processing;

FIGS. 21A to 21E are views showing display contents in character size change processing;

FIGS. 22A to 22E are views showing display contents in character size change processing;

FIG. 23 is a flow chart showing the flow of image display processing;

FIG. 24 is a flow chart showing the flow of image display processing;

FIG. 25 is a flow chart showing the flow of image display processing;

FIG. 26 is a flow chart showing the flow of image display processing;

FIGS. 27A to 27D are views showing the concept showing the contents of image display processing;

FIGS. 28A to 28C are views showing the concept showing the contents of image display processing;

FIGS. 29A to 29C are views showing the concept showing the contents of image display processing;

FIGS. 30A to 30C are views showing the concept showing the contents of image display processing;

FIGS. 31A to 31C are views showing the concept showing the contents of image display processing;

FIG. 32 is a flow chart showing input processing of a character string to be printed on a tack index label;

FIG. 33 is a flow chart showing input processing of the character string printed on the tack index label;

FIG. 34 is a view for explaining the display of a selection screen;

FIG. 35 is a flow chart showing input processing of a character string to be printed on a cassette label;

FIGS. 36A and 36B are views for explaining the display of a selection screen;

FIG. 37 is a flow chart showing label sheet feed control in printing processing;

FIG. 38 is a schematic perspective view of a sheet sensor and a paper feed roller portion as the main part in feed control;

FIG. 39 is a plan view showing the positional relationship of labels with a label sheet;

FIG. 40 is a flow chart showing printing start position setup;

FIG. 41 is a flow chart showing printing execution processing;

FIG. 42 is a flow chart showing initial setup when printing is continuously performed on the printed label sheet;

FIG. 43 is a view showing the general concept of character label registration processing and character label read processing;

FIG. 44 is a flow chart showing character label registration processing;

FIG. 45 is a flow chart showing registration file formation processing;

FIG. 46 is a flow chart showing character label read processing;

FIG. 47 is a flow chart showing registration file retrieval processing;

FIG. 48 is a flow chart showing processing for comparing retrieval characters with registration characters;

FIGS. 49A and 49B are views showing the outer appearances of label shapes;

FIGS. 50A and 50B are views showing the outer appearances of label shapes;

FIGS. 51A and 51B are views showing the outer appearances of label shapes;

FIG. 52 is a flow chart showing processing for inputting a character string and registering it in a storage unit;

FIG. 53 is a flow chart showing processing for reading out the character string registered in the storage unit;

FIG. 54 is a flow chart showing processing for reading out the character string registered in the storage unit;

FIG. 55 is a block diagram showing an arrangement of a wordprocessor according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 56 is a flow chart showing the processing contents of a retrieval program;

FIG. 57 is a flow chart showing the contents of symbol retrieval processing of this embodiment;

FIGS. 58A and 58B are a perspective view showing the outer appearance of the wordprocessor and a plan view of the display unit, respectively;

FIG. 59 is a view showing group formation of a conversion table; and

FIG. 60 is a view showing group formation of the conversion table.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First Embodiment

FIGS. 1 to 4 show the outer appearance and the internal mechanism of a label printing apparatus 1. The label printing apparatus (to be referred to as an apparatus thereinafter) 1 is an apparatus for performing printing on a large number of labels 4a regularly arranged on a label sheet 4. The apparatus 1 comprises an upper half 2 and a lower half 3. An insertion port 5 for the label sheet 4 is formed between the upper and lower halves 2 and 3.

A large number of keys 6 which can be used to input characters or the like are arranged in the upper half 2 of the apparatus 1. A liquid display unit 7 consisting of a liquid crystal panel for displaying a predetermined character count, a line count, or an input character string is arranged above the keys 6. The screen of the liquid display unit 7 is scrolled in four directions when the character and line counts exceed the size of the screen. The keys include character keys such as the alphabet, function keys such as "function" (FC in FIG. 4), "cancel" (CA/LC in FIG. 4), "conversion" (CV in FIG. 4), "execution" (EX/RT in FIG. 4), and "print" (PT in FIG. 4) keys, and cursor keys as arrow keys representing four directions. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, some of the alphabet keys respectively have special functions executed by depressing together with the depression of the function key. The functions are referred by symbols shown in on the upper right side of in the top of the key. For example "RG" shows the region determination, "SZ" shows the changing size, "CS" shows the character string, etc. The contents of the keys are marked on their key tops.

The insertion port 5 and a feed path 11 extending backward from the insertion port 5 are formed in the lower half 3. A guide roller 9 for guiding the inserted label sheet 4 is disposed on the upper surface of the feed path 11. Three paper feed rollers 8 driven and rotated by a sheet feed motor 16 are disposed behind the guide roller 9 to feed the inserted label sheet 4. A printing unit 20 is arranged behind the paper feed rollers 8.

A guide side wall 18 is formed on one side, e.g., the left side of the insertion port 5 and the feed path 11. The label sheet 4 is inserted with the left side being guided along the side wall 18. The apparatus 1 serves as a mechanism for performing printing with reference to the leading end of the left side (i.e., the front left corner portion) of the label sheet 4. The left side of the label sheet 4 abuts against the side wall 18 to position the label sheet 4.

A sheet sensor 19 of a photointerrupter or the like constituted by a pair of a light-emitting element 19a and a light-receiving element 19b on the upper and lower surfaces is arranged on the side wall 18 at the downstream position of the feed path of the feed rollers 9 so as to detect whether feeding is accurately performed, as shown in FIG. 5. That is, while the fed sheet is interposed between the light-emitting element 19a and the light-receiving element 19b and light from the light-emitting element 19a is received by the light-receiving element 19b, the sheet sensor 19 recognizes that the left side of the label sheet is in contact with the side wall 18. In this case, the sheet sensor 19 determines that an appropriate feed state is set.

The lower portion of the printing unit 20 is threadably engaged with a spiral shaft 12 extending in a direction perpendicular to the insertion direction of the label sheet 4, and rotation of a carriage motor 14 is transmitted to the spiral shaft 12 through a gear train 15. The printing unit 20 reciprocates along the rotating spiral shaft 12. A rack 13 is supported in the upper portion of the printing unit 20 so as to be parallel to the spiral shaft 12. The teeth of the rack 13 are formed at the lower portion so as to oppose the printing unit 20, so that a gear in the printing unit 20 is meshed with the rack 13. A thermal head 28 consisting of a dot array capable of printing one character extends from the lower portion of the printing unit 20. A rubber platen 17 is disposed in the lower half 3 at the lower portion of the thermal head 28. The printing unit 20 also serves as a cassette holder for mounting a ribbon cassette (not shown) of an ink ribbon. The printing unit 20 includes a take-up shaft 25 for taking up the ink ribbon.

The liquid crystal display unit 7 can display selection screens of an input character string, an edited character string, an identification code, character string information read out from a storage unit 31, and other information.

The control block diagram of the label printing apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. 6.

The apparatus 1 comprises a central processing unit (to be referred to as a CPU hereinafter) 30 for controlling the overall operation of the apparatus, and the storage unit 31 constituted by a ROM, a RAM, and the like.

The CPU 30 is connected to a head dive unit 36 for driving to bring the thermal head 28 into contact with or separate it from the label sheet and outputting a character signal, a carriage motor drive unit 37 for controlling to drive the carriage motor 14, a sheet feed motor drive unit 38 for controlling to drive the sheet feed motor 16 for synchronously driving the paper feed rollers 8 and paper discharge rollers 23, and a display drive unit 39 for driving the liquid crystal display unit 7.

The CPU 30 has an internal counter for counting the number of sheets and a timer for synchronizing sheet feeding. The CPU 30 receives input information from a key input unit 6' and a detection signal from the sheet sensor 19, outputs control signals to the corresponding circuit sections, and systematically controls a character input, character editing, selection of the type of label sheet, display operations, and printing operations (to be described later).

The CPU 30 monitors the detection signal from the sheet sensor 19. The CPU 30 determines whether insertion and feeding of the label sheet 4 are accurately performed in accordance with whether a detection signal representing the front left corner of the label sheet 4 is input. At the same time, the CPU 30 indirectly measures the position of the label sheet during feeding in accordance with rotation pulses of the sheet feed motor upon generation of the detection signal or with time management.

The storage unit 31 stores a program for controlling the overall operations (e.g., editing and printing) of the apparatus, a kana/kanji conversion dictionary memory, label information representing the layout positions of labels arranged on each type of label sheet, and the vertical and horizontal sizes of the label, a sheet number in the form of an identification code for specifying the type of label sheet, and the following character size table (Table 1):

                  TABLE 1
    ______________________________________
    (vertical .times. horizontal; unit: dot)
                         Horizontally
                                     Vertically
             Square Char-
                         Elongated   Elongated
    Size Classi-
             acter (6    Character (5
                                     Character (5
    fication Types)      Types)      Types)
    ______________________________________
    SS       16 .times. 15
                         16 .times. 30
                                     32 .times. 15
    S        22 .times. 22
                         22 .times. 44
                                     44 .times. 22
    M        32 .times. 30
                         44 .times. 66
                                     66 .times. 44
    L        44 .times. 44
                         44 .times. 88
                                     88 .times. 44
    LL       66 .times. 66
                         66 .times. 88
                                     88 .times. 66
    3L       88 .times. 88
                         --          --
    ______________________________________